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Donuts, Homemade, Gemma Stafford, Recipes, Breakfast, Bigger Bolder Baking, Bold Baking Breakfast
Print Recipe
Homemade Donuts: Baked Better than Fried?
Prep Time
25 mins
 

Homemade Donuts are much easier to make than you think and I'll show you how to bake them into a gorgeous treat that I think are better than fried ones.

Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Servings: 15 Donuts
Author: Gemma Stafford
Ingredients
For the Donut Dough:
  • 3 1/4 cups (460g) all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons active dried yeast
  • 4 tablespoons (57g/2oz) butter,
  • 1 cup (225ml) milk
  • 1/3 cup (80ml) water
  • 1 tablespoons vanilla extract
For the Glaze
  • 2 cups (240g) powdered sugar
  • 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
  • 3 tablespoons water (maybe more needed. you want a runny glaze)
Pumpkin Pie Spice Donut Holes - A MUST TRY!
  • 4 tablespoons (2oz/60g) butter, melted
  • Mix together in a bowl 1 Cup (200g) of Sugar and 4 Tblsp of pumpkin pie spice ( If not available you can use cinnamon)
  • Toss in your warm dough form the oven into the butter covering each piece.
  • Using a fork toss the holes into the sugar spice mix and coat.
  • Set them aside on a wire wrack and continue with the rest of the donut holes
  • Serve with chocolate ganache or sauce. Best eaten the day they are baked.
Stuffed Nutella Donuts
  • Fill a piping with nutella (or jelly, cream, peanut butter, custard etc)
  • Poke a hole in the bottom of the donut with a small knife.
  • Fill the donuts with the nutella filling. When you see the donut grow there is enough in there.
  • Do a little swirl on top so people know what’s inside and enjoy! :)
  • Best eaten the day they are baked.
Instructions
For the Dough:

  1. Mix the flour, yeast, sugar and salt together in a standing mixer fitted with dough hook.

  2. In a measuring jug, heat together the milk, water, butter and heat until luke warm, and the butter is melted. Stir in the vanilla.
  3. Turn the machine on low and slowly add the milk mixture. Mix for 2 minutes to wake up the yeast.
  4. Run a spatula under the dough to make sure everything is mixed well.
  5. Increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough is shiny and smooth, 6-8 minutes. The dough is supposed to be saggy and on the wet side
  6. Rub your mixing bowl with vegetable oil (or any flavorless oil) . Place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat lightly.
  7. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap tight and let the dough rise until doubled, 1 ½ -2 hours.
  8. Once it has risen, turn out the fluffy dough onto a floured work surface.
  9. Roll out to ½ “ thick
  10. Using a round cutter ( I used 3” but you can use smaller), cut of your donuts circles. Dust your cutter in flour so it doesn’t stick to the dough. Then cut out the donut hole with a much smaller cutter ( I used a piping nozzle , 1 ¼“ )
  11. If you want to make donuts to stuff with Jelly or nutella then cut a plain round donuts (I used 2 ½” cutter)
  12. TIP: You can prepare the donuts to this stage and put in the refrigerator until the next day. When needed, take out and let me come to room temp and rise a little (roughly 30 minutes) and then bake off as instructed below. Fresh donuts for breakfast.
  13. Cover your donuts with cling film and let them rise at room temp for 20-30 minutes.
  14. Heat the oven to 350oF (180oC)
  15. Unwrap the donuts. Brush the very top (not the sides) with melted butter. Sprinkle the tray with 2 tblsp of water.
  16. Bake for 13 minutes, set a timer. Rotate tray during baking if needed to get color all over. You want to bake these just enough. if they get too much color they can dry.
  17. While the donuts are baking making the glaze: Simply whisk all the ingredients together. Use more water if needed to get a thin glaze.
Glazing the Donuts:

  1. Take you donuts STRAIGHT from the oven and dunk into the glaze one by one. It makes a huge difference. They soften and soak the glaze and you get a much better end result. Dip each in the bowl of glaze with forks. Let the excess glaze drip off before and then place on a wire rack to dry. You will see the glaze set fast because the doughnuts were warm. this is just my absolute favorite part

  2. Once the glaze has set, I like to double dip them one more time. I think it gives them a nice sweetness and the crust great texture and chew, it’s up to you.
  3. Once the glaze dries I strongly urge you to eat them as fresh as possible because they are at their absolute best!
  4. Have leftovers for the next day? Pop them in the oven and refresh them for a few minutes. the glaze might melt but they will be warm and fresh again

Watch the Recipe Video!